Rome Must Fall

My name is Tirkus. I was originally a mountain dweller from Iberia. I once lived a free and easy life, but then some Romans incited rebellion in Iberia, leading to war. The war dragged on, and Roman officials began imposing higher taxes on various tribes in the mountains. If we didn’t pay, we would be seen as accomplices to the rebels. Since the taxes were too high, our tribe wouldn’t survive if we all paid, so our chieftain always tried to find ways to delay. But one day, Roman troops suddenly attacked our village, killing most of our people. I was captured and sold into slavery on one of the farms here, forced to toil in the fields every day…”

Tirkus spoke with a heavy tone, recounting his past experiences. At the same time, he lifted his tunic, revealing a crisscrossing pattern of scars on his chest and back. “At first, I was filled with resentment and thought about escaping every day. But this is Roman territory—where could I possibly escape to? Every time I was caught, I would receive a severe beating and be denied food… To avoid the lashings and hunger, I eventually submitted, slaving away like cattle under the crack of the whip. At first, it felt like torture, but later, I became numb. I felt like I was living as if I were already dead. I thought maybe one day, I would just collapse in the fields and be thrown into the thicket like trash by those guards…”

Everyone listened silently, empathizing with Tirkus’ experience. Some even had tears welling up in their eyes.

“And then,” Tirkus’ voice suddenly rose, “the army led by Commander Spartacus arrived in Vesuvius. The farm where I was located was the first one they captured. When I gained my freedom, I decided to join their ranks and become one of them. After joining, I realized that my decision was absolutely correct! In this rebel army, everyone had suffered hardship as impoverished people or slaves. With no oppression between us—we were as close as brothers…

“When the Roman legion attacked us for the first time, I was with Commander Spartacus and his army. It was our first battle against the Romans, and none of us had any experience. As a result, we suffered a defeat… But later, Commander Spartacus listened to the advice of Commander Maximus. During the night, he led us to climb down from a cliff over 100 meters high and launched a surprise attack on the Roman camp. The Romans suffered a devastating defeat! I was injured in that battle, but thanks to the meticulous care of the medical team of the logistics camp, my wounds healed. So, I decided to stay in the logistics camp…”

As Tirkus spoke, his face was filled with gratitude, but also a hint of indiscernible shyness. He coughed a few times and continued, “Last night, Centurion Tolerugo told us that the headquarters has assigned over 400 slaves to the logistics camp. Commander Maximus is planning to form several more centuries, but he needs to select some people from the existing units to become officers. I thought it’s a good opportunity, so I volunteered and became the decanus of this squad. Alright, that’s the end of my story. Who wants to go next?”

“Me! Me!” Tiribazus shouted first.

Led by Tiribazus, the other new recruits of the squad took turns sharing their experiences.e Although they came from different backgrounds and some struggled with speaking Latin fluently, like Samoras, no one in the group mocked them. Instead, everyone empathized with each speaker had endured. After everyone had finished sharing their experiences, they felt a sense of closeness among themselves.

Then, Tirkus spoke again in a solemn tone, “Commander Maximus once said that the reason why we became slaves and suffered so much is ultimately because of the Romans’ greed and expansionism. Although we have obtained our freedom, it is only temporary. As long as the Romans are not defeated, we could easily become slaves again and fall into darkness. If we want to overcome the mighty Romans and live in freedom forever, there are at least three things we should strive for…”

Tirkus paused intentionally, observing the attentive faces of the new recruits. He continued, repeating what Commander Maximus had emphasized to the guards many times: “First, we must be as close as brothers, united as one. Only by doing so will we be able to achieve twice the result with half the effort, and only then will we be able to unleash a powerful force in battle! Can you do it?!”

The new recruits exchanged glances and almost unanimously replied, “Yes!”

“Good!” Tirkus continued, “Second, we must abide by the laws of the logistics camp. Commander Maximus said that laws are meant to regulate the behavior of every individual in the camp, creating order and preventing chaos that could lead to the disintegration of our forces. Can you do it?!”

“Yes!” the new recruits responded in unison again.

“Oh, ‘yes’ what? You don’t even know what the laws are, and you’re blindly responding!” Tirkus chided with a laugh, but then turned serious, saying, “Listen carefully, everyone! The first rule of the logistics camp’s laws is to obey orders from superiors. Commander Maximus is in charge of the entire logistics camp, and we must carry out his orders and follow his commands. Do you understand?!”

“Understood!!!”

“And the second rule…” Tirkus proceeded to list out each of the logistics camp laws one by one. To help the recruits memorize, he gave examples of violations and punishments, making them all tense up.

“Do you all have these laws memorized?”

“N-No… we don’t!” the new recruits replied in unison.

“Of course you can’t memorize them all in one go. It’s fine, I’ll go over them again tonight, then test you one by one tomorrow. Anyone who hasn’t memorized them will be punished.”

Upon hearing these words, the new recruits tensed up again.

Tirkus noticed their reaction but didn’t say more. He looked around at the other squads and then spoke loudly, “I mentioned two points earlier, but this third one is equally important. The Roman army is extremely powerful, if we want to confront and defeat them, we must undergo military training. Only when each one of us becomes a skilled soldier through rigorous training will the entire army become strong. Do you all agree?”

“Yes!”

“Very well, it seems everyone is very enthusiastic. I won’t delay any further. Let’s begin the training now,” Tirkus said decisively.

This soon?! Only Tiribazus was surprised, as the other recruits excitedly followed Tirkus to the wooden stakes.

“First, we’ll start with wooden stake training!” Tirkus exclaimed.

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Maximus looked out at the training ground, where the number of soldiers was greater than ever before. Under the guidance of their squad leaders, they were engrossed in intense training, their shouts ringing out and creating a lively atmosphere.

Next to him, the leader of the military advisory group, Frontinus, reported, “Out of the 456 slaves assigned to us this time, after screening, we have selected 365 soldiers. Now our guard force has reached a total of 687 soldiers, so we have added four new centuries.”

Upon hearing this, Maximus replied, “Just as we anticipated.”

“Yes, thanks to the preparations we made last night, we were able to integrate them into our force so quickly and start training immediately,” Frontinus said.

“It’s also thanks to the military training and daily instruction we’ve been conducting for over two months that we were able to select so many promising soldiers from the existing squads to serve as squad leaders. I hope they seize this opportunity and receive better training so that they can be promoted to centurions, prefects, or even legion commanders in the future,” Maximus said, looking at the bustling training ground with great spirit.

Although the members of the military advisory group had been in the logistics camp for over two months and were familiar with each other, there were still a few who regarded Maximus’ vision as mere wishful thinking. Someone asked, “I wonder if the army that left camp today has already encountered the Roman army? And how is the battle going?”